N. Korea embarks on new project to modernize PyongyangNorth Korea has embarked on a new project to modernize its capital, Pyongyang, after leader Kim Jong-un pledged to turn Pyongyang into a global city during last month's ruling party congress, according to state media Wednesday. An exhibition of construction equipment and an event to deploy related vehicles were held a day earlier for the fifth-stage construction project in Pyongyang's Hwasong district, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The Hwasong district is a newly refurbished housing area where a total of 40,000 housing units were built through four consecutive construction projects under Kim's guidance from 2022 to 2025. The fifth-stage construction was launched last month, attended by Kim, and at a subsequent ruling party congress, the leader ordered the city to be developed into a model administrative unit with perfect political, economic and cultural functions. Kim also said relevant projects should be pursued continuously to turn Pyongyang into a "great city equipped with the traits of a global city." Choson Sinbo, a pro-North Korea newspaper based in Japan, said in a reMar 18, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea, Russia mark 77th anniversary of bilateral treaty on economic, cultural cooperationNorth Korea and Russia have marked the 77th anniversary of a bilateral treaty on economic and cultural cooperation, the North's state media reported Wednesday. Russia's acting ambassador to North Korea, Vladimir Topekha, reaffirmed Moscow's commitment to further advancing cooperation with Pyongyang during a banquet held Tuesday in Pyongyang, the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. North Korea and Russia signed an Economic and Cultural Cooperation Agreement on March 31, 1949, paving the way for Moscow to provide loans and resources to help Pyongyang build a socialist economy. In a speech, Topekha said the Russian people feel "satisfied" with the two countries' strategic partnership, forged between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which is becoming more cemented and validated against the backdrop of complex international political situations. The KCNA also quoted Topekha as expressing Russia's support for economic development and "autonomous" foreign policies outlined at last month's North Korean ruling party congress, adding that bilateralMar 18, 2026By Yonhap
North Korea talks unlikely as Trump-Xi summit stalls, wars rage, analysts sayWith U.S. President Donald Trump's planned meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly pushed back amid the wars in Iran and Ukraine, analysts say a potential summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is unlikely to materialize soon, though they stop short of ruling it out entirely. Trump is planning to push his China visit to May as the Iran conflict intensifies, but Seoul is pressing ahead with its efforts to broker renewed dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang. The moves have fueled speculation that a Trump-Kim meeting could be back on the table. Unification Minister Chung Dong-young on Monday urged North Korea not to miss the opportunity, after Trump expressed interest in meeting with Kim during a White House sit-down with South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok Friday. Most analysts, however, said the U.S. has little bandwidth for North Korea diplomacy right now amid global geopolitical uncertainties. “There is no room for Trump to discuss the talks between the North and the U.S. amid the Iran war,” Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea InstitutMar 17, 2026By Park Ji-won
N. Korea shows off 'human-like' robots at polling station, schoolsNorth Korea has showed off "human-like" robots at a polling station and schools, in apparent efforts by Pyongyang to catch up with fast-growing global robotics technology. Choson Sinbo, a pro-North Korea newspaper based in Japan, published a photo of a robot with a humanoid appearance at a university in Pyongyang in its Tuesday issue. The photo showed a robot wearing a white and navy hanbok dress. The newspaper said the robots are being actively used by teachers and students, describing them as working in cooperation with teachers to provide educational assistance to students. How the robots move or operate could not be confirmed in the absence of video footage, and the newspaper did not provide details on whether they can move or are immobile. A similar female humanoid was also introduced to foreign diplomats posted in North Korea, with the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang uploading an image of the robot deployed at a polling station during parliamentary elections held last Sunday. "A robot in the form of a young lady wearing traditional (Korean) dress welcomed voters," the embassy said on iMar 17, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim inspects memorial museum for troops sent to Russia in war with UkraineNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a memorial museum under construction to commemorate North Korean troops dispatched to support Russia in its war with Ukraine, state media said Tuesday, with the museum expected to open as early as next month. Kim "gave on-site guidance at the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at the Overseas Military Operations under construction" the previous day, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. Construction is now 93 percent complete, the KCNA said, quoting Kim as saying the museum will be "inaugurated on the occasion of the first anniversary of the liberation of Kursk." The first anniversary may fall in late April, as the North declared Russia's recapture of Kursk on April 27 last year. North Korean soldiers dispatched to Russia played a pivotal role in Russia's retaking of the region bordering Ukraine. During Monday's inspection, Kim toured the museum's interior, an area designed as a "heroes' cemetery," an exhibition area for capture weapons and other facilities under construction, the KCNA said. He stressed the "important significance" of the projecMar 17, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea to hold first session of new Supreme People's Assembly on Sunday: KCNNorth Korea will hold the first session of its new Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) to deliberate on the election of state leadership and revision to the constitution, state media reported Tuesday. The upcoming session comes after North Korea held elections last Sunday to select deputies for a new term of the SPA following last month's Ninth Congress of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. "The session is to deliberate on the election of the president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the elections of the state leadership and sub-committees of the SPA, the revision and supplement of the Socialist Constitution," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The meeting will also discuss carrying through the five-year plan for national economic development adopted at the congress and the state budget for 2026, the KCNA said. Key points of attention for the session include whether the North would codify its policy of defining the two Koreas as "two countries hostile to each other" in the constitution, as well as whether leader Kim Jong-un would issue further mesMar 17, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea estimated to have earned up to $14.4 bil. from Russia-Ukraine war involvement: reportNorth Korea is estimated to have earned up to $14.4 billion from its troop deployment to the Russia-Ukraine war and arms exports to Russia, a report showed Monday. The figures come from a recent report on the economic impact of North Korea's soldier dispatch and arms exports to Russia by Im Soo-ho at the Institute for National Security Strategy. "If North Korea fully collects payment for its troop deployments and arms exports, the key economic impact of sanctions, which is the reduction of hard currency earnings, is expected to be undermined," he said in the report. Pyongyang is believed to have sent troops deployments four times since October 2024, involving more than 20,000 North Korean soldiers. Even before the troop deployments, North Korea was spotted in satellite photos shipping various arms to Russia. From August 2023 to December last year, North Korea is estimated to have earned between $7.67 billion and $14.4 billion in hard currency, according to the report. Direct earnings from the troop deployment, including solider wages and death compensation, are estimated at $620 million. TMar 16, 2026By Yonhap
Pyongyang-sponsored hacking group uses KakaoTalk in malware distribution campaign: reportA North Korea-linked hacking group has used stolen KakaoTalk accounts to spread malware in a series of recent cyberattacks, highlighting a new distribution tactic, a report showed Monday. Konni, the hacking group tied to Kimsuky and other Pyongyang-sponsored groups, was found to have recently carried out an advanced persistent threat (APT) campaign using spear-phishing emails and compromised KakaoTalk accounts to infect victims' systems, according to the report published by Genians Security Center, a South Korean cybersecurity institute. The group sent spear-phishing emails disguised as notices appointing the recipient as a North Korean human rights lecturer, with a malicious online link included to gain remote access to the victim's personal computer. Spear phishing is a type of phishing attack that targets a specific individual, group or organization. The report noted that KakaoTalk's PC software was used, forcing the victim to serve as an intermediary for further attacks. After remaining undetected on the system for some time, the actors gain access to the victim's KakaoTalk contact lMar 16, 2026By Yonhap
Ex-N. Korean point man on inter-Korean affairs serves as chief of rubber-stamp partyRi Son-gwon, North Korea's former point man on relations with South Korea, has assumed chairmanship at a rubber-stamp political party. Ri, former director of North Korea's now-abolished United Front Department (UFD), was identified as the chairman of the Korean Social Democratic Party's central committee in a report Sunday by the Korean Central Broadcasting Station on key officials voting in parliamentary elections. The Korean Social Democratic Party is one of two nominal political parties recognized in North Korea, apparently to project the appearance of a multiparty system. Ri's party is in effect closely allied with the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. Prior to his current post, Ri headed the ruling party's Bureau 10, a downgraded body tasked with affairs involving overseas North Koreans following the abolition of the UFD, which handled inter-Korean relations. The Korean Social Democratic Party has often handled inter-Korean relations by participating in exchanges with South Korean political parties or religious groupsMar 16, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim casts ballot at coal mine constituency in parliamentary electionsNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has cast his ballot at a coal mine constituency in elections to pick deputies for a new term of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA), with voter turnout recorded at 99.99 percent, state media reported Monday. Kim visited a polling station in Chonsong Youth Coal Mine under the Sunchon Area Youth Coal-mining Complex on Sunday to vote in the elections of deputies to the 15th SPA, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). North Korea typically holds rubber-stamp parliament elections every five years, but Sunday's elections marked the first in seven years as a follow-up to last month's key party congress. The North's leader voted for Jo Chol-ho, manager of the youth coal mine who is an SPA deputy candidate, according to the KCNA. At a speech, Kim stressed that coal is a "driving force" for the country's self-reliant economy, praising workers in the coal industry as the core element of the national development. "The faster our development accelerates and the more our ideals turn into a reality, the more urgent demand for coal will be," Kim said, highlighMar 16, 2026By Yonhap
